nightlife

nightlife
Originally uploaded by cthopper93.

Been taking a lot of photos and posting them on flickr lately. This is one of my favorites. A night HDR.

the hypocrite is me

So a couple of weeks have past.  I promised myself not to Wii hunt.  I broke that promise the week before last.  We found a site that gave information about Wii inventory and shipment dates.  We decided to go to Circuit City at open the Sunday before last (1/21/07).  We de-iced the car while sliding down our inclined driveway, and then drove 30 miles to try to capture the elusive wii.  We pulled up to the store and started walking in through the ice storm.  A guy was walking out of the store holding a Wii.  Upon sighting this man Tammy said, "run!" so we ran.  We get to an associate and he tells us that he had just sold the last unit.  I was almost in tears.  Once I made it to the car there was yelling.  The image of the guy walking out of the store with his Wii was etched into my memory.  You could just see the satisfaction on his face.  This is why I had given up the hunt in the first place, disappointment.  The day wasn't all bad.  We ended up going to see Pan's Labyrinth.  While we were very sleep deprived, the film kept our attention.  It is a beautiful modern fairy tale with outstanding music, spectacular special effects and a moving story. 

With that incident being over, I found out our local Wal-Mart was going to be getting a large shipment of Wii's this past Sunday (1/28/06).  I decided come hell or high water I was getting a Wii.  I went at 9pm Saturday night and asked if there was a line for the 12:01 distribution, and there was.  I was about 10th in line.  Thankfully they had 45 so I was able to get my Wii.  It is magnificent.  It is all I expected and more.  I will write more about it later. 

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Zombies!!! and Great Movies come together, again!

Tammy and I played the boardgame Zombies!!! for the second time last night, and we had a blast.  The first time playing was kind of confusing.  It was difficult working out the subtleties.  Some of the rule aren't extraordinarily clear, but if you can master the basic core of rules the rest can be worked out as you play.  Twilight Creations, the company that make the game, has a good FAQ
site that answers most of the questions that may have been left out of the instructions.  You also have the freedom to create any variation you like which we plan on doing once we become even more comfortable with the core rules.  I can't wait to pay with a larger group of people!

While playing the game we watched The Red Queen Kills Seven Times.  We picked this movie up as part of the Emilio Miraglia Killer Queen Box Set.  I have to say the movie was pretty amazing.  Being a huge fan of Dario Argento's movies I have to say this film had the style, colors, and music of a great giallo horror masterpiece.  While the movie was almost as good as an Argento movie it lacked the blood and brutality of the Italian masters films.  Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of blood for the casual viewer, it is just not as abundant as it is with, let's say, Deep Red.

This movie was brought to us by a company I am going to be keeping my eye on called NoShame who also release the great Italian film Dark Waters that Tammy reviewed on VOX a few months ago.  They have great potential, and so far I have been really happy with the movies I have seen from the company.

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Finished

So today we wake up at 9am...  For most people that is pretty realistic, maybe even late, but for Tammy and myself it is very uncommon.  We work night shift.  We wake up at about noon, go to work from 2pm - 5pm and return home from work midnight or later.  We come home, eat, and veg out for the rest of the night.  It is impossible for us to get to sleep right after work so we end up staying up late.  So we wake up at 9am this morning to make it to Toys R Us at open.  We did this because last weekend an associate gave us a *wink* "hint" that it would be beneficial to make the 30 mile trek today to try to obtain the elusive Wii.  We get up, get ready and on a few hours sleep make the journey hoping it will be our last attempt.  We get to Toys R Us and ask an associate in the game department about todays shipment and about the Wii and to our dismay she screeches at us, "No, we don't have em and they never tell us when they are coming."  This is the response I have received for 3 solid weeks now.  The tone of this particular response just hits me at the wrong place.   I understand that these people are as tired of answering the same questions as I am asking them, but come on, it is your job.  You are being payed to answer my question.  I am polite in asking, please return the courtesy.  So anyway, we search the area further.  All the other retail stores are sold out and do not know when to expect them.  I am done.  I am no longer searching.  Tammy and I have both spent way too much time and energy on this hunt.  If Nintendo doesn't want to ship enough units to meet demand that is their business.  I am just going to sit back and wait for them to casually enter the stores when I will say, "Oh! Look there!  It is a Wii that hasn't been sold to an employee of the store.  Ten people aren't gathered around the game case to fight me for it...  Shopkeep!  Please fetch me that Wii!"  Until then I will ignore my hunting instinct and enjoy the board game I ended up buying today, Zombies!!! from Twilight Creations. 

I hope it is as fun as the Wii.  We will see!

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Wii hunt

After my last several weeks of futility I want to start a campaign.  Why hunt for a Wii when you could be playing Warcraft?  Maybe this campaign will distract enough hungry gamers long enough so I can get my hands on a Wii.  I will start making posters and place them all over town.

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Robert Anton Wilson needs help

Boing Boing: A Directory of Wonderful Things

It turns out tragedy has struck the life of one of the most inspirational authors of our time.


Monthly contributions of $50.00 or more will be greatly appreciated.
All monies will go directly to Robert and can be sent to his PayPal
address olgaceline@gmail.com. You can also send a check to RAW c/o
Futique Trust, P.O. Box 3561, Santa Cruz, Ca 95063.

Hard Candy

Every now and then a film comes along that truly makes you appreciate the craft of film making. This movie is one of them. I had seen a trailer for Hard Candy earlier this year, and while impressed, I had not expected just how wonderful this movie would end up being. From the trailer I had gathered the elements of this original plot. Guy picks up underage girl on internet, twist... girl is the predator. The plot had me interested enough to pick up the movie, but the delivery was enough to make me adore it.

The movie starts of in an internet chat room where flirtations are exchanged between our two main characters. A meeting is established and the film begins in a coffee shop. From this point on we are put into a constant exchange of interesting dialogue between two very believable, captivating characters.

Hayley, played by Ellen Page, is a very mature, intelligent teenager who ends up going home with her online friend Jeff, a photographer in his 30's, played by Patrick Wilson. From the moment they enter Jeff's home the tension and chemistry between the characters evolves from subtle teases to psychological torment. It is a delight to see a relationship like this built between the characters and the audience. I tend to believe character development is one of the most lacking qualities in modern film. Most of the time I find myself (especially with the horror and suspense genre) not caring about the characters that are presented to me. They are typically one dimensional creatures that have no depth or interesting qualities. These characters are solid, intelligent people with multi-dimensional motives that the actors deliver with the greatest of ease.

Beyond the characters is the cinematography. From the very beginning of the movie you can see the care put into each frame. The colors come across so vivid and vibrant it feels as though you are standing with the actors witnessing every scene. It turns out that, "The digital color grade was affected by a specially built system designed and operated at the Moving Picture Company by Jean Clement Soret (famous for his transformation of digital video into filmic colour in Danny Boyles 28 Days Later.)" to quote the films website. The light is reflected perfectly on every texture drawing notice to subtle clues and ideas placed like easter eggs through the movie. Each item presented through the movie encourages thought and speculations of the next action. Each action that occurs, in turn, makes you question the consequence to come later. In these ways the sets and setting act like a character in and of itself. All together these elements add up to an uneasy tone that follows the film from beginning to end.

Director David Slade has given us a true masterpiece with this film. I find it difficult to find a flaw in this moving piece of art. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Darren Aronofsky's THE FOUNTAIN

Darren Aronofsky's THE FOUNTAIN
If you are not excited about this movie, you should be.

Ranting and raving

I don't really have a particular subject to address today. I am so flighty today... lacking direction. I had a Superman SoBe earlier and I am unbelievably wired. These drink are the basis of my existence anymore. They are by far my favorite energy drink. Not only do the taste magnificent (carbonated cherry), but they contain mega doses of caffeine and vitamins. I am concerned that they will eventually go away considering they are a movie promo drink, but I am going to enjoy the hell out of them until they are gone.

Silent Hill... I wrote about the movie several posts ago when we went to see it in the theater. I was amazed then and I am amazed now. For the past few nights it has been background noise as I have slept. This is one of the best horror movies I have seen in years. It is hard to describe just how right this movie feels to me. It brings together the pace of the video games with the essence of a well made Clive Barker film. While it isn't perfect it is a movie I can watch over and over without getting sick of it.

That is all for now... as flighty as I am right now I am sure I will do more later.

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Requiem

Yesterday, I found out my childhood pet died. He was old. We could never come up with a definitive answer, but he was probably about 18 years old. We picked him out of a litter of strays because he was the most active and playful. As time went on, though, he became elusive and lazy. Many times when he was a young cat you could find him laying on one of the beds purring loudly with his eyes closed. It really did sound like a motor running. During his middle age he would run off when guests came and just disappear for weeks at the time. We shared the desire for isolation. While dating Tammy and I watched him stare at a spot on the wall in my bedroom for about two hours. We suffered a lot together. He kept me company when some of the most traumatic events of my life occurred. I saved him when he had kidney problems and could do nothing but cry in agony.

It turns out he ended up getting hit by a car and slowly dying for a couple of days. I hoped he would be able to pass quietly and naturally into the infinite sleep, but unfortunately that is not the fate the universe decided to deliver. I will miss Rambo kitty. He meant a lot to me. I have included a photocast as a link that I will try to update as I find more pictures of him.

So Negligent

It has been so long since I have posted. So many things have happened I don't know where to begin. I have been obsessed with comics lately. It is a fun hobby, but it steals a lot of time and money. I have put up a myspace page for Informational Terrorism Transmissions that I will link to later. I have socialized more than I ever had before, and there are picture to prove it. Again, these are things I will post later. I have seen a few really cool movies and T.V. shows I would love to review, as well. For now I have to run because I started this post a little too close to work time.

So I have been away for a while. I did get to see V for Vendetta at the Imax as planned. That was really great. The movie itself was good. Better than can be expected for a Hollywood movie. I was kind of put off by the little liberties they took with the story. I suppose that is why Alan Moore asked to be removed from the credits. I definitely still recommend the trade paperback over the movie, but if you get a chance see the movie. Just don't neglect the comic!

Speaking of comics, I have fell back into the insanity of comic collecting. I absolutely love it. There are scores of great writers out there writing for the Marvel and DC Universes. The independent comics are doing great as well. I would love to promise reviews, but the way my time and laziness are right now it is hard to tell if I will be able to put anything up or not. I guess time will tell.

I did get to see Silent Hill. Wow! I was not let down by this gem at all. From the first second of the film the Silent Hill tone is set. The sounds of the original game echo and creep their way up your spine to tap into your points of fear and nostalgia in your memory receptors. The pace, the camera angles, the tone, the darkness... it is all there. The story has been restructured to take the plotlines of the first 3 games and weave them together with a female lead. The structure really does well to enhance the experience for those who have played the game while not making it to confusing on the newbie. About half way through I had given up on this being a real gore movie and had accepted that the gore was going to stay in a PG-13 type range. Was I ever wrong. By the end of the movie it had turned into a Clive Barker like splatter nightmare. I could have enjoyed this movie even without the gore, but what an added bonus. I don't want to give spoilers, but there was skinning, dismemberment, and a personal favorite, barbed wire. The ending was ingenious and found itself staying away from the most common formulas. I find it hard to say enough good things about this movie. It is a must see for horror fans. It felt so good to leave a theater and not be disappointed!

My poor blog, why have I forsaken thee?! Well, I did finish Half Life 2. It was pretty cool. I was consistently impressed with each level. The graphics were outstanding, the sound was legendary, and the end was surreal and beautiful. I would definitely give this game a 5 out of 5 on every aspect. The only slight problem I had was lagging in a few spots, but they were brief and are to be expected for such a graphically demanding game. You could really see this game pushing the XBOX. I would someday like to get a super powerful PC to fully experience this game, it's multiplayer, it's HD performance and it's mods. I would really like a Mac version, but that doesn't seem too likely in the near future. Oh well, I am just thankful to have played it at all. Now it is back to Doom 3 Resurrection of Evil. It isn't as good as Half Life 2 so far, but I love FPS's and I will finish it anyway.

I am hoping to go see V for Vendetta at an Imax this Sunday. I am really excited. I am worried as well. It seems Alan Moore is not very happy with the movie. This really worries me. On the plus side, I will be really pleased or really disappointed by a movie on a really big screen!

Card Player

Okay, so I did not like Argento's Phantom of the Opera. It was a bad movie, and Asia's acting did not make it any better. It was the first Argento title I purchased and had to get rid of. Saying that, I also have not been the biggest fan of his post-Trauma films. I thought Sleepless had some good elements, but it could not quite achieve the magic of his earlier films. Last night I witnessed an abomination- The Card Player. You could tell right from the beginning it was going to be bad. It jumped right into some cop-drama action right from the start with little to no character development. I only continued to watch out of respect to one of my all time favorite directors, and my hopes that the movie might get better. Unfortunately, it continued to get worse. The story was about a killer who would challenge the police to 5 games of poker. For every game the police lost the killer would cut something off of the victim. If the killer was the overall winner he would kill the victim, and if the police were the overall winner he would set the victim free. It ended up turning into a bizarre love story that lacked the depth of even the Stendhal Syndrome. While it did contain small elements of some of Argento's earlier movies they were barley noticeable and did not make the film any easier to watch. One of the more heartbreaking aspects of the movie was the lack of blood and gore. There were a few scenes of corpses and a couple of murders that implied cruelty, but they came up short like the rest of the film. There are three main reasons I watch Argento's movies; the artistic gore, the beautiful costumes and set designs, and the riveting, yet sometimes confusing, storylines. This movie was lacking on every aspect. The only good thing I can say is that I did not hate the music. The score was, while not nearly as good as a Goblin score, pulsing and driving in an attempt to keep the story in motion. I think it is time for Argento to give up writing his own movies. I have read that the last of the Three Mothers trilogy is being written by an American couple right now. I am not familiar with their work, but hopefully they will be able to do a better job than Argento could do in his current writing state. I just hope he is capable of directing it.

I am consistantly trying new browsers and plug-ins for browsers. I find it a delightful aspect of the internet. I have worked with Flock a bit, and I find it a bit to glitchy for my liking. I have moved on to Firefox. I like the amount of add ons the browser can have while remaining stable. Time will tell which browser I will use the most. I prefer the newest build of Safari, but it takes away all of my Blogger editing tools. Firefox neglects the spell check feature. I am sure if I explore enough I will find a plug in for one, though. Right now I am using the plug in Deepest Sender in Firefox. Hopefully it will work well. I shall move on. The net is vast.

Just posting with a new nifty bloger widget.  I love my Macs. 

Halfer Duo

I have been overwhelmed these past few days with a horrible addiction, Half Life 2 for the Xbox. The game is just so good. Just when you get to a point where you think, "how could this game be more innovative?" The game will deliver something else new and exciting. The gravity gun is really cool, but not as cool as leading your giant insect minions to battle the evil Foot Soldiers and Zombies! Then there is the score... Wow! Powerful, emotional... Hearing in 5.1 is just amazing. I am very impressed with this game and am not even 3/4 of the way through it. I am about 10 hours into it and have loved every minute of it. It is just stunning the way the puzzles are set up to advance from one place to another. I really can't say anything bad about the game at all. It is challenging in many aspects, but very rewarding as well. With every challenge comes a great sense of accomplishment. I am taking a rest tonight, but I hope to get to play for a very long time tomorrow.

Old Birthday Cake

I was just going through some of my old pictures and noticed this cake a friend did for me for my 23rd birthday. It was a delicious ice cream cake made by Amy Anglin portraying the rose cross.

the horror, the horror

Wow. I have seen some bad horror movies in my days, but I have to say Darkness Falls was one of the worst. I posted this at the Home Theater Forum several years ago.

I found it to be horribly predictable. While I understand the concept of fantasy and am a great fan of surrealism, there were so many contradictions through the film that I stopped questioning rationality at all by the end. However, toward the end of the movie you could tell from dialog and bad acting which character was going to die next. The end followed the same worn formula that so many "horror" and action films have been following since the early 90's. It truly seems that most new horror films are being made by dispassionate directors that will make a film of any genre to get a chance at their first big break. I am a big horror fan (especially Romero and Argento), and it sincerely breaks my heart to see a movie like this joining the rest of the garbage polluting my favorite genre.

What makes me post this? Fangoria online has let it be known that the director of Darkness Falls is directing the new Friday the 13th movie. I guess it can't be much worse than Jason X or Freddy Vs. Jason.